One of the best parts about graduating from college and matriculating into Real Life is getting away from all those awkward guys who a) you've already hooked up with or b) boned your roommate or even c) whose roommate you hooked up with a week after him (sorry!), d) realized they were gay after you dated them, or e) you drunkenly made out with one time (one time!) and had to see in class every week thereafter for the next three years. Yes, it is good to be rid of them.

And then, you're graduated. You are in Life. You were told there would be men here. Hot ones. Nice ones. But where are you supposed to find them — bars? Good luck.

But I have discovered a solution, a secret pool of confirmed decent, nonpsycho, attractive men: guys you went to college with, but who weren't in your year! Genius, right?

They're generally easy enough to find, particularly if you're in a major city. If you want to be proactive about it (and let's face it, a little dorky), hit up a young alum event with one of your old gal pals. Or, if you want to play it cool, wait until you have a chance encounter at a party or on the street. Even if it's someone you didn't know at school, as long as you vaguely recognize him (no name needed), you're all set to start macking. All it takes is a casual, "Oh hey, didn't we go to college together?" Then, it's super-easy to Facebook stalk him — he's already in your network. Plus, he comes with built-in references, i.e., your mutual FB friends. Just knowing that your old study buddy sat next to a guy in econ class is often enough to tip the scales from potential psycho to potential boyfriend.

You'll also have built-in casual conversation topics — majors, dorms, that rumor you heard about him doing drugs with your thesis adviser. Courtesy of a chance run-in, I recently had the chance to test this out with a celebrity and fellow Vassar alum (er, dropout). Not that Justin Long and I are dating now that we've talked about Shakespeare professors (What up, Don Foster!) and his old roommates, the guys from The Bravery, but if it weren't for Drew Barrymore and Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel, you know, maybe.

And knowing just a few, very arbitrary, facts about a person can be undeniably alluring. Chem major who once drove a golf cart into the lake and now works at my favorite TV show? Totally intriguing. Though, I will admit, you might know a few unsavory facts (like that once, in the throes of passion, he said to a girl, "Where we're going, we don't need roads"), at least now you have an excuse to find out exactly what he meant. Or ask him who his cute friend is, instead.